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The 2005-06 calendar is now posted on our website
and is also available on the credenza in the front office.
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Welcome to ISM's weekly newsletter for the week of
March 27 - 31, 2006! Please note that the ISM news brief is now available
to ISM families during regular school weeks via our website no later than 7:30 p.m. each Monday (Tuesday, if Monday is a holiday), unless otherwise noted. To request hardcopy notification, please contact Business Administrator / news brief editor Lisa Griffin Burns
at lburns@ismonterey.org
or call at 583-2165.
Please note: Past newsletters can be found
here.
The composition of our ISM student base continues to change even at this point in the school year. We sadly say "goodbye" to 1st grader Eden Fritz who transferred over the break to Junipero Serra School. Eden and her family, to include older sibling Lucas, parents Lisa and Eric, as well as grandparents Gloria Chavez and Dr. Doug Hulstedt, have been tremendous supporters of ISM over the years. They have graciously provided water containers for staff and student drinking needs for the past four years from the "Purified Water To Go" store in Pacific Grove, hosted several phenomenally tasty "Staff Appreciation Luncheons", assisted in researching, procuring and installing audio-visual equipment for ISM, and continuously provided useful, forward-moving feedback to assist with our on-going development. We wish Eden and Lucas (who transferred earlier this year to Monterey Bay Christian School) and their family the very best of luck! Stay in touch!
B. NEW STUDENT JOINS ISM: Please join us welcoming two new students to ISM, both of whom started today in Miss Sweeney's 2nd grade class. They are Gabriel Aquino and Eleanor Bennett White, who according to Miss Peggy, Instructional Aide for Grade 2, both are already transitioning very well to their new classroom. We also welcome our new parents, Celeste Hall and Emilio Aquino who are Gabriel's parents, as well as Lisa Bennett and Robin White who are Eleanor's parents, to our ISM community. We look forward to getting to know you more over the coming months!
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A. KUDOS TO SPRING BREAK CAMP STAFFERS FOR EXCELLENT PROGRAM: Parent Carrie Bretz, mother of Kindergartner Finnegan, wrote the following: " I just wanted to let you know what an exceptional job Miss Lisa (Wichael-Loomis) and Miss Sarah (Benbow) did for the first week of the ISM spring camp (Spring Fling). They provided the children with an unbelievable abundance of fun, interesting, and safe projects throughout the week. Finnegan was absolutely ecstatic after each day's activities, and ... he will [probably] be rehashing the outcome of the 'leprechaun traps' for months (years?) to come. The availability of these camps was not only very convenient for me due to my work schedule, but was worth every penny for the enthusiastic and professional way the program was conducted. Hats off to Miss Lisa and Miss Sarah! We are looking forward to an Week 2 of camp, featuring Kidlympics!" Carrie then followed up today with the following compliments about Week 2, Kidlympics, programming: "In summary, hurray for Ms. Barbara [who did] another outstanding job with the preparation and execution of the camp theme! In addition to the "Big Game" segment of the daily schedule, there were morning warm-up exercises (great!), sports-related arts & crafts (including learning about the food pyramid, clever), the grand finale Awards Ceremony, and just all-around fun. Barbara (and her assistants Miss Jessica and Miss Kristen) even prepared an agenda for the parents, outlining the daily activities for the week - a real plus in my book. The staff is doing a real wonderful job with the holiday camps!"
Thank you to Carrie for her kind words and acknowledgment of a job well done by our Camp program staffers.
B. 6th GRADERS SCORE HIGH MARKS AT 2006 MONTEREY COUNTY SCIENCE FAIR: 6th Grade science instructor, Mr. Tod Spedding, reports: The 2006 Monterey County Science Fair competition has come and gone with 480 middle and high school students having participated this year. The sixth graders compete in the Junior Division, toe-to-toe with 7th and 8th graders. It was the first year that ISM participated, and our students set themselves apart.
Ten ISM projects were submitted for competition, including projects by Maile Murphy (the Law of Thirds in graphics composition), Jasmine Villegas (the diagnosis and treatment of bronchitis), Jamie Berg (the effect of cooling on the color of kiln-fired ceramics), Robin Trumble (on neutralizing the hot in hot sauce), Blyth Barrymore and Enrique Garcia (the effect of environment on maze learning among rats), Cobi Allen & Luke Kim (how awareness regarding the need for handwashing changes student behavior), Victoria Hutchins (on the phases of Venus), Conor Jahn (the effect of static electricity on liquids with chemical polarity), Emily Shifflett (comparing/contrasting oral bacteria among four animals), and Ian Casey & Iljin Cho (on the microfossils of the Monterey Formation).
All of these projects were strong and competitive. Typically, Science Fair winners are not necessary chosen based on the greatest effort, or insight, or rigor. It can be about luck, the number of projects in your category, who is judging, etc. With that said, the following students/projects were awarded prizes:
1. Emily Shifflett, 2nd Place, Microbiology;
2. Cobi Allen and Luke Kim, 1st Place, Social Sciences AND a $250 award from the Monterey County Schools Insurance Group Award;
3. Robin Trumble, 1st Place, Pharmacology and Toxicology AND Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge Award AND Finalist for the California State Science Fair;
4. Jamie Berg, 2nd Place, Materials Science AND ASM National Foundation Award AND California State Science Fair, Alternate;
5. Victoria Hutchins, 1st Place, Physics and Astronomy AND Naval Sciences Award AND Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge Award AND Finalist for the California State Science Fair.
This year, the California State Science Fair, which is the final science fair of the academic year for students throughout the State of California in grades 6 - 12, is hosted by the California Science Center (formerly, the California Museum of Science and Industry) and will be held on May 22 - 23, 2006. More than 900 participants from nearly 350 schools throughout the State will meet to compete for awards totaling over $50,000.
Two have two finalists and one alternate eligible to compete at the state level is phenomenal and a truly remarkable showing for our first year! We anticipate ongoing success in the future. Watch out for ISM next year and years thereafter! Congratulations to all students, parents, and mentors who helped contribute to this worthy outcome!
C. HISTORY DAY SUCCESS: ISM students did very well this year at the annual History Day competition sponsored by the Lyceum of Monterey. Three ISM teams were selected as state finalists and will be competing at the state competition to be held this year in Sacramento on Friday, May 12th. The winning teams were as follows: Deepti Gopinath, Jacque Leahy, and Caterina Poehner for their project on Margaret Ownings, the founder of
Friends of the Sea Otter, Will Perkins and Aaron Schaffer for their project
on the work of the Carmel-based Freedom Fields organization, and Misha Polovonoff for his project on Mahatma Gandhi. Several other ISM teams won special awards,
including the AT+T Award presented to teams who best utilize primary sources. ISM students Hannah Gordis and Carla Hambley received this award for their interview with Julie Packard of the Monterey Bay Aquarium as did Team Perkins and Shaffer for their research with Freedom Fields. All of the students in Ms. Burns' 5th grade class did an excellent job and both Ms. Burns and Mrs. Jahn, who was also present at the award ceremony, received numerous compliments on the presentation skills and poise of the participating ISM students.
At the state competition coming up in May, the students will be competing against teams from nearly 60 California counties and several hundred entrants are expected to participate in each category. Our very own, Ms. Sally Burns, Grade 5 instructor, will be serving for the first time as a judge at the state competition, so it should be a very exciting weekend on many levels!
D. WORLD AFFAIRS CHALLENGE: The 8th grade class has an exciting opportunity to attend the World Affairs Challenge at San Francisco State University over the Spring Break. Participating 8th graders, Ms. Burns, Grade 5 instructor, as well as Instructional Aide Barbara Peters drove up to S.F. on Friday, March 17th and overnighted in preparation for the next day's events. The Challenge was open to both middle and high schoolers, although they were judged separately. Each group was tasked to pick a "topic of controversy" in the world today, research it, and explain what the inherent problem(s) are as well as suggest possible solutions. They did this in the form of a presentation board, an essay, and a live presentation. ISM students chose the World Trade Organization as their topic and preformed a skit depicting the controversy involved. The day's activities began with groups of students unknown to one another assigned the task of solving a theoretical controversy as a team. Presentation boards were available throughout the day for viewing, and in the afternoon, the live presentations were held, followed by the awards ceremony. Although ISM students did not come away as award winners, they and staff collectively learned a lot by attending this event as first-time participants. The students' favorite element of the Challenge was the chance to work with other students whom they had not met before to brainstorm and solve world-weighty problems.
Welcome to spring and to Quarter four! The following are three important reminders:
A. SEM WORKSHOP PROVIDERS NEEDED: The last six-week round of SEM Friday workshops begins next week on Friday, April 7th. We are still in need of more workshop volunteers and are therefore slightly extending the sign-up deadline until 8:30 a.m. (sharp) Wednesday, March 29th! Please email Dr. Carber at scarber@ismonterey.org today if you can make a commitment to leading a six-week Friday SEM workshop! The experience is worthwhile for both providers and students, so give it some serious consideration!
B. PARENT CONFERENCES: In order to grant more flexibility, it was agreed in a recent staff meeting to create a larger window of time this quarter in which to complete conferences. Some teachers are beginning conferences this week, while others are starting next week. Almost all grade levels are planning student-led
portfolio conferences, and the focus of these is generally on the contents
of a "total talent" portfolio (showing among other things student growth
over a period of time) rather than on a report card. Teachers may tweak
their own approach, however. Last year several grades held well-received
"group conferences" with several student-led parent meetings running
simultaneously. Parents may, of course, schedule an additional private
meeting with a teacher if needed. Contact your child's individual instructor to arrange a separate meeting.
C. REMINDER: STAR testing will occur during the week of May 1 - 5, 2006.
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A. GRADE 7 / SHEPHARD: FIELDTRIP TO CSUMB - SCHOOL OF TELEDRAMATIC ARTS: WEDNESDAY , MARCH 28th - 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
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A. G.A.T.E. TESTING FOR 2006-07 scheduled for Tuesday, March 28th: This testing is designed for rising 4th and 5th grade students who have been nominated by their classroom teachers for the Gifted and Talented Education (G.A.T.E.) program offered through the Monterey school district. Coordinator Bud Cook (899-7177) plans to meet the nominated students here at ISM and check them onto the bus prior to the testing.
B. FRESH LUNCH ORDERS DUE WEDNESDAY, March 29th: During the week of March 13 - 17, April menus were distributed to students and posted in the front office. If interested in meals for next week, please forward completed order forms and payment to Program Coordinator Lisa Wichael-Loomis no later than Wednesday for consideration. No late menus will be accepted!
C. ISM CHARTER RENEWAL PUBLIC HEARING - Monday, April 3rd, 7:00 p.m.: We will be giving a presentation in support of our charter renewal application to the MPUSD Board at their board meeting beginning at 7 p.m. Show your support of our program and charter renewal petition by being present this evening! If you have not done so already, the petition, which will accompany the renewal application, is still available for parent signatures in a binder in the front admin office.
D. NEXT FAMILY ASSOCIATION MEETING - Thursday, April 6th, 6:30 p.m. The Family Association led by Volunteer Coordinator Ellen Gaucher will be holding its next organizational meeting next Thursday in the ISM library. We welcome the participation of all parents, to include new parents just joining ISM, at this meeting to see how you might be able to help with the number of special events during this busy last quarter of school. Events on the docket (many listed in this newsbrief) which will require parent support include: the two Spring concerts, 2006-07 New Student Registration, the International Festival, Field Day, and Kindergarten and Grade 8 Graduation. Plan on attending this meeting to how your volunteer hours can best be used!
E. APRIL SATURDAY WORK DAY - Saturday, April 8th, 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
F. DUAL DATES FOR SPRING ARTS CONCERT - Thursday, April 20th, 6:30 p.m. and Thursday, April 27th, 6:30 p.m.: Due to the size of the student base this year, we have decided to offer two Spring concerts this year, with the earlier date highlighting the Instrumental music program and student drama and music performances by K-4 students, while the later date will feature 5th - 8th graders. The evening's entertainment is being coordinated by staffers Miss Sarah Benbow (Drama) and Miss Natalie Sarrazin (Music) who have whipped up an array of musical pieces and drama skits unlike what we have seen to date. Please mark your calendars for one or both of these concert dates, depending on the grade of your child or children.
G. ISM STAR TESTING SCHEDULE (GRADES 2 - 8): Monday, May 1st - Friday, May 5th: Please mark your calendars for this week and do not, if possible, plan family vacations, medical appointments, and the like, wherein students will be absent from school, increasing the need to follow-up with make-up testing. Youngsters also have a better chance at performing to their highest potential on standardized testing when they are well nourished and have adequate sleep, so we highly encourage stable home and extracurricular schedules during this time. Thank you! .
H. 4th ANNUAL FIELD DAY - Wednesday, June 7th: The last day of school this year is scheduled for Wednesday, 6/7/06, which means - yahoo, Field Day! Once again, over 35 different activities will take place on the fields and blacktops surrounding ISM for a fun-filled last hoorah of the school year! Of course, to make this day a success, we rely on the active participation of our family base to host the day's activities as well as the newly-added lunch/potluck for our students and helpers. If you can help with this event, please refer to the flyer sent home with students today (3/27/06) and complete the bottom section of this form and return it to Ms. Livingston, ISM P.E. instructor, no later than Friday, May 5th. Event set-up will be from 8:30 - 9:30 a.m., Field Activities (including clean-up) from 9:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m., Water Activities (including clean-up) from 10:30 - 3:00 p.m. If you have a special request for a particular station, please notate that on the form or email Julie directly at jlivingston@ismonterey.org. We certainly appreciate the amazing help we receive from many of you each year to make this day one that our students will never forget!
: As Volunteer Coordinator, one of Ellen's (mother of 3rd grader Riley and ISM's unofficial sibling mascot, Fletcher) responsibilities is to ensure that parents so diligently volunteering each month are credited with the appropriate number of volunteer hours. To ensure that this process is accurate, please remember to take a moment to log in ALL volunteer hours, to include those put in by members of the Technology and Site Committees, volunteers on
Saturday Work Days, those involved with regular water/copy paper delivery, Gala efforts, and, of course, any recess/lunch and classroom time. Once again, the volunteer log-in binder is located in the admin office on the credenza by the front door and is organized by your child's name. Ellen notes that we are not necessarily getting an accurate accounting of overall volunteer hours as many folks - who are active, regular volunteers are not all logging
In their hours on a consistent basis. The ISM Parent Agreement stipulates that each family will contribute three hours of volunteer time each month and the volunteer logging process is in place to identify those meeting this requirement (and then some!) as well as those who are not. We heartily thank those of you that are contributing phenomenal numbers of volunteer hours and who have also taken the time to log in hours.
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A. TAIKO DRUMMING : The next session of taiko starts today, Monday, March 27th. The costs for the remaining sessions are as follows:
Session 6 ($50) : March 27, April 3, 10, 17, 24 (5 weeks)
Session 7 ($40) : May 1, 8, 15, 22 (4 weeks)
Please also let Denise Hasegawa know if you are planning to sign yourself or your child up for these sessions... or if you would like to be off of her mailing list. Anyone who has previously been in the class is on the list. Also, is anyone interested in buying a practice drum? The taiko instructor may have one for sale.
B. CHESS FOR KIDS : The second Winter/Spring session of Chess began on Wednesday, March 1st prior to the recess and is scheduled to conclude on April 19th. Instructor Lev Frenklakh is happy to take on new students at this time and will prorate any late registrations received for this session. The third and final session for this school year is slated for Wednesday, April 26th through Wednesday, May 31st. Session fees are $60 per session and the class is held in Mr. Brandau's Grade 8 portable on Wednesday afternoons from 3:45 - 4:45 p.m. Registration forms are available in the front office and checks can be made payable to "ISM" with 15% of the fees donated to ISM, following contractor payment.
C. MANDARIN CHINESE LANGUAGE LESSONS AT ISM : For the Winter/Spring sessions, instructor Yu Chuen has added an additional day of class Afterschool; this program is now offered on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays from 3:45 to 4:45 p.m. The cost is $8.00 per class, per student, payable per session. The April session will begin on Monday, April 3rd through the 27th and the total cost is $96 per student. Please return registration and fees directly to the ISM office. Questions can be directed to Yu Chuen at 224-6470.
: Listed below are a few things desired by community members:
1) Recycling of Printer Cartridges Yields Payoff: We continue to generate a steady stream of revenue from the printer cartridge recycling program with nearly $160.00 in checks awaiting us in today's mail from the Empties4Cash program. Please keep them those cartridges coming!! We are enthusiastic to continue this program, so please spread the word to family members, colleagues, etc and forward your used cartridges to the admin office. The empty cartridges that we - as a community - typically throw away can be recycled and remanufactured. ISM will then benefit by getting paid up to $4.00 for each empty inkjet cartridge that has a print head. Acceptable brands include HP, Lexmark, Xerox, Compaq, Brother, Dell, Canon, and Apple; however, Epson print cartridges cannot be accepted as they are produced without a print head. If possible, please submit cartridges either in their original packaging or a Ziploc bag to keep it safe from damages and spills. Thank you!
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